I want my life and my reading to be in my control. With the way things are on at OS right now, As a reader, I am not in control.
We have Food Tuesdays and Fiction Fridays and so why not a What We wish to See on Cover story every once in a while to let the Editors know what the readers want - free of charge?
I opened the Cover today - just now and was attracted by the lovley flower picture of the Bishop's Garden. But there was nothing else that appealed because I realised I was looking for reading material tonight that would make me sit up and read all night. Or write page long comments. I found nothing that interested me. I should have liked fiction tonight. Or at least History stories. But all the titles looked boring. Promised nothing particularly exciting to a foreigner. The Prison piece a bit, but not now, I thought, not at bedtime.
As an INTJ person I like order and system. It helps me find stuff quickly, saves me reading time.
It made me think these thoughts:
- I want clear cut sections on the cover.
- I want clear cut sections featuring Book Reviews - American Book Reviews - American Regional Popular Literatture
- American Music Section featuring bios or studies or critique or analysis not just plain reiews - because American Papers are rare around this part of the world and Rolling Stones is available only in select cities and is way to expensive.
- American Movie Section - I dont want to read about classics but about popular fare that ordinary people liked and that became a box office hit with the Americans in American - never mind how it was received in Europe or elsewhere.
- American Lifestyle Section - most of what went on today's cover can be slotted as Lifestyle material except perhaps Matt Paust's post which I did not read and am just surmising from what I read in the catch line on the cover. Food and What I Could Write About My Legs and Why I want to Save My Grandma's Relics etc all fall under this category.
- A Separate OS Fiction Section - for creative writers. So the days I come here for creative writing I always find som.
- A separate OS American SocioPolitical Economic writing section featuring stories about American politics, social issues, economic issues etc
- Travel to Little Known Destinations in America like Tink had done and some others.
- American Diaspora Writing Letter from the US or something like that. The foreign settler's view of the US.
- Let the Feed change Weekly not - every hour or whatever is the frequency now. Or at least Bi-Weekly - in keeping overseas readers in mind. We operate from different time zones and therefore that would be nice if OS did not run my life and I could come on in at my leisure to look for what I want. The feed changes too fast as of now. When I was not working and spent my entire day on OS it was okay but now that I am back at work it isn't. Once something disappears off the Cover it is difficult to find it again.
If there are Sections, ALL the niche writers would get a chance to do their thing, and well, everyone would stand a btter chance at being featured on the Cover because the Cover would need filling up.
Readers can easily go to their favourite section without having to wade through material they did not want in the first place. When I want to read fiction at bedtime, I can simply click on the fiction link and not have to wait for Friday Cover!
Will Emily give it a thought please?
Which is a Better Cover? Which one helps you choose faster? Is diverse?
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Kate O'hehir
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Comments
But for a feed to be a feed, it has to be "real time" so I wouldn't want to make it a longer wait than it already is.
I do join your wish for a better search option to find articles by OSers that we may have missed. One way to do so is to allow us to better organize our "favorites" so we can keep better track of the bloggers we already love. Also, make the search box better to bring up more relevant results (not just tags) of the content we're looking for.
Finally, is it too much to ask to have an option where we would get email notifications when people comment on the comments we post on other blog entries? It would surely keep some blog entries in the public eye for a longer duration and draw me back to some of them that I might otherwise forget.
If my vote counted for anything here.....
Mission, your 2011 Editor's Pick was gorgeous but sadly for you my dear friend, my blog isn't where the OS jhoond (band) that have the clout, gather, so no one would even know about this post or your vote. But your vote and voice and support matters to ME. Let us keep clamouring for it and see what happens :) Emily, they say, 'listens' - thank you for your comments and the rate
I would like to know what section topics the editor is looking to fill each day - humor, politics, food, human interest, nature, debate, home and family etc... so that we might target those - it's a win-win for OS.
Rated!
Thank you for casting your vote in favour of the demand for SECTIONS and that gives this a better chance to be heard.
Oh and thank you for reading my fiction piece!!!
My add is there should be a "Weekend Magazine" where features and op-ed summaries are solicited.
BenSen - I hadn't thought of the Weekend Cover - that is a wonderful idea, the Sunday paper was always such a delight to get just bec they had those Sunday extras. For Op-Ed and Features they could assign five writers from the members every week and choose the best. That way all the good writers get to showcase their work every once in a while and they still get work for free! The writers feel happy.
VZN - I like your idea: they have a built in PM system that could be used by members or volunteers or associate editors. The time would have to be adjusted, and there has to be someone sitting at the OS desk attending to the associate editors feed and take action on it immediately. The associate editor sends in links to material or edits to someone at OS, who then immediately logs in from his OS ID and makes the changes online. Even with hundred pieces it should not take more than three hours. The feed time would have to slow down a bit. That is all. With the way things are now only about 8 stories go up on the Cover - which isnot much. The associate can have 3 volunteers under him sending him links too, from which he selects the best, and that team of three can change. There can be a rolling system. This way they can involve more readers in the process of selection and thereby make more people happy. And if they can pay the associate volunteer editor say, a couple of hundred dollars or so for a month's work, is it so bad? Am sure OS can afford that much? It is only a token of thanks.
Rated with hugs